CHAPTER 12

MARKETING COMMUNICATION: PERSONAL SELLING, SALES MANAGEMENT AND SALES

PROMOTION

• Promotion is applied marketing communication.

• In the marketing mix, promotion serves three purposes:

• 1. To Inform. Promotion provides facts about the product and places where to avail of the product.

• 2. To Persuade. Promotion encourages a buyer to buy a product or to change his attitude about the product.

• 3. To Remind. Promotion reminds consumers to regularly buy a product.

THE ELEMENTS OF PROMOTION

• There are five elements of promotion: personal selling, advertising, publicity, public relations and sales promotion.

• These promotional strategies use three general types of communication media:

• 1. Direct Human Communication. this is usually on a face- to- face basis or on the telephone.

• 2. Indirect Communication. this is via a medium sucy as radio, television, magazines, and newspapers

• 3. Interactive Communication. this is making use of some electronic medium such as the internet.

PERSONAL SELLING

• PERSONAL SELLINGis the direct presentation pf a product or service to a prospective customer by sales representative of the company selling it.

- It is the most flexible means of delivering a promotional message.

Scope of Personal Selling

• There are two kinds of personal selling: • 1. Inside's selling- involves retail-store selling.

It also includes employees who take orders over the telephone.

• 2. Outside Selling- involves sales people going to the customers. They make contact with customers by mail, telephone, e-mail, or field selling where the sales person sells at a customer's place of business or home.

Classification of Sales Persons

• Seven types of sales persons fall under two groups:

• ORDER TAKERS• 1. DELIVERY SALES PERSON- This sales person primarily delivers the product. Few of these sales person do the actual selling. Usually, they take and fill orders.

• 2. INSIDE ORDER TAKER- This sales person takes orders at the seller's place of business. The job of the salesperson's is to serve them efficiently.3. OUTSIDE ORDER TAKER- This salesperson goes to the customer in the field and accepts an order. Most of the sales made bt outside order takers are repeat orders of regular customers.

• MISSIONARY SALESPERSON- This salesperson is not expected to take an order. His job is to build goodwill, perform promotional activities and provide information and other sevices for the customers.SALES ENGINEER- This salesperson sells complex or technically sophisticated products. The salesperson has the ability to clearly explain the product to a prospective customer and adapt the product to the customer's needs.

ORDER GETTERS6. CREATIVE SALERSPERSON- This salesperson is involved in the creative selling of goods, both tangible and intagibles. Creative selling involves designing a system to fit the needs of a particular customer.

• 7. PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT- The responsibility of the salesperson is to bring in new business.

The Creative Selling Process

• Is a series of steps that provide guidelines for the salesperson.

• It is an adaptive process that begins with the identification of potential customers and tailors the sales presentation and product offering to each prospect's needs.

• The ultimate goal is customer satisfaction.

Seven Steps in the Creative Selling Process

• Step One: LOCATING QUALIFIED PROSPECTS- Locating prospects is called PROSPECTING. It consists of Identifying prospective customers and qualifying necessary purchasing power, authority to buy, and the willingness to buy.

• Step Two: PRE- APPROACH PLANNING- This step involves gathering and evaluating information about the prospect's situation. The salesperson needs to know the prospect's requirements and any other relavant information that might help make the sale.

• Step Three: THE APPROACH- The approach involves making an initial contact and establishing rapport with the prospect.- The approach is intended to make a good impression, attract the prospect's attention, and ensure the prospect's willingness to listen to the sales presentation.

• Step Four: THE SALES PRESENTATION- This is the salesperson's attempt to persuasively communicate the products benefits and explain appropriate courses of action to the potential buyer.- An effective sales presentation tells the product "story". - This step can be explained by the acronym AIDA that stands for Attention, Interest, Desirr, and Action.

• A- attract Attention- The first task in a sales presentation is to attact the prospect's attention and tp generate curiosity.I- arouse Interest- The sales representative holds the prospects attention and stimulates an interest in the product. The salesperson needs to show how the product will benefit the prospect.

• D- create a Desire- Interest and desire for the product are established in a nearly simultaneous steps. There are no definite pattern in these two steps but often, a product demonstration helps create a desire for the product.A- call for Action- After creating a desire, the sales representative now moves intp action by urging the prospect to place an order.

• Step Five: HANDLING OBJECTIONS- Because objections explain reasons for resisting or postponing the buyinf decision, the salesperson needs to listen and learn from them.- A salesperson who encounters an objection can provide additional persuassive information, clarify the sales presentation, or offer the basic argument for the product in a different manner.

• Step Six: CLOSING THE SALE- In selling, the term closing indicates that the sale is being brought to a finish.- When the prospect's willingness to closr is not clearly revealed, the salesperson may utilize what is called the trial close.- A Trial Close is a tactic intented to draw from the prospect information that will signal whether a sale is near.

• Step Seven: THE FOLLOW UP- The closing of a sale must not be viewed as the end of thr process but the start of the company's relationship with a customer.- The best way to keep customers it to follow up after the sale.- During the follow-up, the salesperson makes sure that everything has beem handled as promised and that the order was shipped promptly and received on schedule in good condition.

SALES MANAGEMENT

• Is a marketing activity dealing with planning, organizing, directing, and controlling the personal selling effort.

• Members of the sales force are managed so that their efforts are directed towarf organizational goals

A sales manager is responsible for: 1. SETTING SALES OBJECTIVES- should be precise and quantifiable and should include a reasonable time frame given the organizationa's resources, its overall promotional strategy , and the competitivr environment in which it operates.

2. ORGANIZING THE SALES FORCE- Since non-retail sales forces must regularly contact their customers either face-to-facr or by telephone, sales departments are generally organized so that sales personnel are responsible for certain accounts.

3. RECRUITING AND SELECTING SALES PERSONNEL- Recruiting starts with finding and hiring individuals for sales positions in the company. The task of the sales manager is to get the right person for the job.

4. TRAINING THE SALES FORCE- Training of sales personnel is a continuous process. - Companies may send a newcomer to the field with an experienced sales person or put the recruit through an intensive training program.

5. DEVELOPING AN EFFECTIVE COMPENSATION PLAN- There are several ways of compensating the sales force:a. Straight Salary - this is an hourly or daily wage plan not tired to sales performance.b. Straight Commission - this is paymeny tied to specific units of sales performance.

c. Quota-Bonus plan - in this method, each salesperson is assigned a sales quota, that is a specific level of sales to be achieved over a specific period.d. Salary Plus Commission - this compensation plan combines two pay methods by granting the salesperson a straight salary and a commission on sales.

6. MOTIVATING THE SALES FORCE- Many corporations use the element of sales promotion such as sales contests, bonus plans, prizes and trips to be won, and sales conventions held nationally or internationally to keep sales motivation high.

7. EVALUATING AND CONTROLLING THE SALES FORCE- Evaluation of a sales manager's or a sales representative's performance is based on whether he or she has met the appropriate goal or objective.

SALES PROMOTION

• Is a marketing device used to stimulate demand and facilitate personal selling.

• There are two categories of sales promotion: • a. Trade Promotions- which are geared

towards the members of the distribution channel such as the wholesalers and retailers.

• b. Consumer Promotions- which are aimed at consumers.

Sales Promotions Geared towardsWholesalers and Retailers

1. TRADE SHOWS- The typical trade shows features booth where producers,suppliers, and other marketers display and provide information about their products.2.CONTESTS- Competition, stimulated by the chance to win bonuses or prizes, helps increase the sale level.

3. DISPLAY EQUIPMENT AND POINT-OF-PURCHASE MATERIALS- Display equipment such as dispensers and other point-of-purchase materials are provided to retailers and wholesalers so that they can conveniently display or highlight the product to be sold.

4. COOPERATIVE ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION- Suppliers share promotional expenses with their retailers or wholesalers.5. ALLOWANCES- are reduction in price, a rebate, merchandise, or any token given a retailer or wholesaler in consideration for a large order.

Sales Promotions Aimed AtUltimate Consumers

1. PRODUCT SAMPLING- New customers are given a sample of the product for the trial use.2. COUPONS- Coupons have an attention-getting quality and are often found as portions of print advertisement, inserts in newspapers, or printed on packages or placed inside packages.

3. REBATES- With a rebate, a consumer gets money back from the manufacturer. It is a price reduction designed to induce immediate purchase.4. CONTESTS AND SWEEPSTAKES- Contests ans sweeptakes stimulate purchases by giving consumers a chance to be big winners.

5.PREMIUMS- A premuim is a product offered free or at a reduced price when another product, the key brand, is brought.6. MULTIPLE-PURCHASE OFFERS- Multiple-purchase offers,such as offering three products for the price of two, encourages bigger than normal purchase and helps maintain customer loyalty.

7. POINT-OF-PURCHASE MATERIALS- Banners, pamphlets, coasters, and other similar products may be used to provide information at the point of purchase.8. PRODUCT PLACEMENTS- When a certain product brand is worn or used by a celebrity in a movie or television show, a very positive message is communicated in a noncommercial setting.

9. SALES PROMOTION TIE-INS- A tie-in involves a collaborative effort between two or more companies that work as partnerd in a promotional undertaking.- Tie-ins generallu borrow interest value from movies, sporting events or other marketing efforts.